Six youngsters feared to have drowned at Yarada beach in Vizag

In yet another tragedy at the bay of Vizag, six youngsters, all aged below 22, are feared to have drowned at Yarada beach.

Out for a picnic, a group of 12 friends, reportedly hailing from HB Colony, Venkojipalem, and KRM Colony ventured into the sea for swimming. With the waves in the sea being rough and potentially dangerous, the locals warned the youngsters from going into the waters. However, things turned ugly when the friends were caught in the strong undercurrents. While a few of them were rescued by community guards, six men turned victims to the turbulent waves.

The missing individuals have been identified as Vasu (21), Tirupati (21), Durga (20), Srinivasa Rao (21), Ganesh (17), and Rajesh (21). While Ganesh, Durga and Srinivasa worked as electricians, Rajesh and Vasu worked at a photo studio and as an autorickshaw driver respectively. Tirupati, on the other hand, was an ITI student. With the news breaking out, the families of the youngsters have been moved to deep misery.

Visakhapatnam district collector Pravin Kumar and MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu visited the accident site and enquired the officials to gain further insights. Search operations have been launched to trace the missing individuals, the police informed.

The incident comes in continuance to the sad saga of deaths at the Vizag beach. Despite the warning signboards throwing caution from venturing into the sea, many enthusiasts do not restrain from risking their lives and swimming in the regions of rip currents. Informedly, on an average, as many as 196 lives are lost annually at the Vizag beach.